Ray Brooks School

Ray Brooks School is a K-12 school in Benoit, Mississippi and a part of the West Bolivar Consolidated School District. In September 2015 it had 214 students. Its namesake was its first principal, Ray Brooks; it was originally known as the Nugent Center School,[1] and until 2014 was the only school of the Benoit School District.

History

The school built in 1959, originally served grades 1-12.[1] It was also known as Benoit High School.[2] In 1986 it was redesignated as a Kindergarten through 9th grade school.[1] High school students were assigned to West Bolivar High School of the West Bolivar School District, in Rosedale.[2]

In 1998 the school received its current name.[1] In 1999 it had 320 students,[3] and in 2000 it had 268 students; that year principal Barbara Akon described it as the smallest school in the state.[4]

High school classes resumed in 2000.[2] Linda Coleman, a Democrat member of the Mississippi House of Representatives from Mound Bayou, stated that the costs of transporting children to West Bolivar from Benoit were too high.[5] The first high school class of that generation graduated in 2002.[1] In 2002 the school was the second smallest school in the state.[2]

It was operated by the Benoit School District until July 1, 2014, when that district was consolidated into West Bolivar Consolidated.[6]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Ray Brooks School." West Bolivar Consolidated School District. Retrieved on July 2, 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Wilson hopes to break out the shoes'." Franklin County Times. January 10, 2002. Retrieved on July 3, 2017.
  3. ↑ "Best Practices-Technology: A one-school district in Mississippi proves that size doesn’t matter: Infusion of new technology will give the district’s 320 students all the advantages of larger systems." eSchoolNews. June 1, 1999. Retrieved on July 3, 2017.
  4. ↑ Hopkins, Gary (2000). "All Aboard the Success Express: On the Road With the Secretary of Education Day 3". Education World. Retrieved 2017-07-03. - Akon's quote and information about the school are in the right-hand sidebar
  5. ↑ Wright, Megan (2012-05-12). "Bill passes to consolidate Delta county's school districts". Mississippi Business Journal. Retrieved 2017-07-03. Coleman noted that West Bolivar and Benoit combined high schools for a time in the 1990s, but said transportation costs were too high.
  6. ↑ "School District Consolidation in Mississippi." Mississippi Professional Educators. December 2016. Retrieved on July 2, 2017. Page 2 (PDF p. 3/6).

Coordinates: 33°38′12″N 91°01′39″W / 33.6367°N 91.0276°W / 33.6367; -91.0276


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